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Authors

WILLIAM E. SCHLOSSER is a forestry specialist, Michigan State University Extension, Courthouse Annex, 12 North Third St., L'Anse, MI 49946-1085; and KEITH A. BLATNER is an associate

professor of natural resource sciences, Department of Natural Resource Sciences, Washington State

University, Pullman, WA 99164-6410.
Special Forest Products:

An East-Side Perspective

William E. Schlosser and Keith A. Blatner

Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management

Project: Scientific Assessment

Thomas M. Quigley, Editor

U.S. Department of Agriculture

Forest Service

Pacific Northwest Research Station

Portland, Oregon

General Technical Report PNW-GTR-380

February 1997
Abstract

Schlosser, William E.; Blatner, Keith A. 1997. Special forest products an east-side perspective Gen

Tech Rep PNW-GTR-380 Portland, OR US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific

Northwest Research Station 27 p (Quigley, Thomas M , ed , The Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem

Management Project scientific assessment)

The special forest products industry has gained increasing attention, as timber harvest levels in the

Pacific Northwest have declined, and has been heralded, at least by some, as a partial solution to the

employment problems common throughout the rural areas of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and

Montana To date, relatively little work has been published on those portions of the industry located

east of the Cascade Range Yet the east side produced about 48 percent of the total wild edible

mushroom harvest (about 1 9 million pounds worth $118 million) during 1992 The region also accounts for all of the baby's breath harvested in the Pacific Northwest and has the potential to produce

large quantities of other floral products It also seems to have the potential to become an important

producer of other edibles and medicinal products, however, relatively little is known about this segment of the industry The following report provides overview of the special forest products industry

east of the Cascade Range and evaluates its potential for expansion

Keywords Special forest products, wild edible mushrooms, floral greens, Christmas greens,

economics, marketing
Preface

The Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project was initiated by the Forest Service and

the Bureau of Land Management to respond to several critical issues including, but not limited to,

forest and rangeland health, anadromous fish concerns, terrestrial species viability concerns, and the

recent decline in traditional commodity flows. The charter given to the project was to develop a

scientifically sound, ecosystem-based strategy for managing the lands of the interior Columbia River

basin administered by the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. The Science Integration Team was organized to develop a framework for ecosystem management, and assessment of the

socioeconomic and biophysical systems in the basin, and an evaluation of alternative management

strategies. This paper is one in a series of papers developed as background material for the framework, assessment, or evaluation of alternatives. It provides more detail than was possible to disclose

directly in the primary documents.

The Science Integration Team, although organized functionally, worked hard at integrating the approaches, analyses, and conclusions. It is the collective effort of team members that provides depth

and understanding to the work of the project. The Science Integration Team leadership included

deputy team leaders Russel Graham and Sylvia Arbelbide; landscape ecology—Wendel Hann, Paul

Hessburg, and Mark Jensen; aquatic—Jim Sedell, Kris Lee, Danny Lee, Jack Williams, Lynn Decker;

economic—Richard Haynes, Amy Home, and Nick Reyna; social science—Jim Burchfield, Steve

McCool, and Jon Bumstead; terrestrial—Bruce Marcot, Kurt Nelson, John Lehmkuhl, Richard

Holthausen, and Randy Hickenbottom; spatial analysis—Becky Gravenmier, John Steffenson, and

Andy Wilson.

Thomas M. Quigley

Editor
Contents

1 Introduction

2 Industry Structure

3 Major Plant Materials Currently Used

7 Employment by Segment

8 Estimated Contribution to the Regional Economy During 1993

9 Potential Products Marketed From East-Side Forests

11 Managing Special Forest Products From an Ecosystem Perspective

12 Forest Succession and Special Forest Products

17 Site-Specific Example

18 Expansion Pathways and Economic Contributions of an Expanded East-Side Industry

20 Current and Potential Contributions to the East-Side Economy

21 A Rural Development Tool

22 Potential Factors Limiting Expansion

22 Institutional Barriers

23 Market Development

23 Need for an Ecosystem Management Perspective

23 Conclusions

25 Literature Cited

26 Appendix
Introduction

The special forest products industry has gained

increasing attention, as timber harvest levels in

the Pacific Northwest have declined, and has

even been heralded, by some, as a partial solution to the employment problems in western

Oregon and western Washington resulting from

the spotted owl-ancient forest controversy

Others point to the special forest products industry as a way to diversify the rural economies

of eastern Washington, eastern Oregon, Idaho,

and Montana

To fully understand the existing east-side special

forest products industry, underlying resourceavailability issues, and its future potential, however, one must first understand the overall industry Currently, most of the physical processing

facilities are concentrated west of the Cascade

Range These companies are often larger and

better established than their east-side counterparts and often have provided access to distribution channels for products produced by east-side

processors Some east-side businesses are

marketing a larger proportion or all of their products, but west-side firms still play a key role in

the marketing of products harvested east of the

Cascade Range It is estimated that it will be at

least a decade before individual east-side special

forest products businesses will begin to approach

the economic maturity of their west-side counterparts The west-side industry, however, will

likely continue to dominate most aspects of the

industry, with some notable exceptions (for example, wild edible mushrooms, baby's breath,

and possibly beargrass)

The special forest products industry is based on

the harvest, processing, and marketing of plants

and plant parts commonly found growing in the

understory of the temperate forest zone common

to the Pacific Northwest Major industry segments include (1) floral greens, (2) Christmas

greens, (3) wild edible mushrooms, (4) wild

edible berries, and (5) wild plants used for medicinal products (for example, Pacific yew, arnica,

and abies oil)

Schlosser and others (1991) conducted the first

formal study of the floral and Christmas greens

segments They estimated that these two segments generated about $128 5 million in product

sales at the wholesale level during 1989, primarily in western Washington, western Oregon, and

southwestern British Columbia Processors located in this area purchased $38 0 million worth

of floral greens and $9 6 million worth of boughs

from an estimated 10 000 harvesters during 1989

In a separate study, Schlosser and Blatner (1995)

estimated that the wild edible mushroom industry in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho paid about

$20 3 million for the acquisition of 3 94 million

pounds of wild edible mushrooms during 1992

and provided income opportunities for an estimated 10,400 harvesters in the three-state region

They estimated the wild edible mushroom segment generated $41 1 million in product sales at

the wholesale level during 1992 About 29 percent

of this total value, $118 million, was generated

from businesses located east of the Cascade

Range The east side produced about 48 percent

of the total mushroom harvest during 1992,

accounting for about 1 9 million pounds of wild

edible mushrooms

Relatively little is known about the value of raw

product received by the landowner, the value paid

to harvesters, number of persons employed, or

channels of distribution for the edibles and medlcinals segments, with the exception of the use of

Pacific yew in the production of taxol

Other plant species used by these industry segments include huckleberries, blackberries, elderberries, quinine conk, cascara bark, wild ginger,

various other roots, herbs, and other similar products Anecdotal evidence suggests that the harvest, processing, and sale of wild edible berries in

the form of specialty jams and jellies has expanded rapidly throughout the Pacific Northwest and is becoming an increasingly important

component of the economy of some rural

communities

Pacific yew currently has only one use and one

manufacturer Yew bark is used in the development of taxol, a cancer treatment processed by

1

 Common and scientific names of species are mentioned in

the appendix
Bristol-Meyer-Squib Yew trees are felled, the

bark removed and purchased by Hauser Northwest, Inc The harvest phase is highly labor-intensive, requiring several crews to strip the bark On

delivery to the mill, it is chipped, dried, and shipped to Hauser Northwest's central processing

plant in Boulder, Colorado

About 1,500 individuals participated in the harvest of Pacific yew in Washington, Oregon,

Idaho, and western Montana, processing about 1 6

million dry pounds of bark in 1992 The harvest

volume of yew bark during 1993-96 decreased,

due to the recent semisynthesis of taxol

As many observers have commented, the special

forest products industry provides badly needed

jobs in many communities of the region The best

paying jobs, and those most likely to provide

value-added employment to the regional economy, however, he in the processing and marketing of special forest products, not in the harvesting phase Unfortunately, the types of jobs

provided by the harvest of special forest products

are frequently low-paying, seasonal, and offer no

medical or retirement benefits and no long-term

security In fact, the special forest products industry is not a panacea for solving the employment

problems of rural areas, instead, it is but one piece

of a larger mosaic of rural development options

Industry Structure

Harvesters are generally independent, selfemployed individuals with the latitude to secure

harvest lease agreements with multiple landowners and to sell products to multiple businesses on a competitive basis Both full- and

part time harvesters are common Full-time

harvesters work almost year-round harvesting

various products Harvest rights are secured by

harvesters in the form of formal harvest lease

The use of trade or firm names in this publication is for

reader information and does not imply endorsement by the

U S Department of Agriculture of any product or service

Danly G 1993 Telephone conversation April 27 1993

[Orofino ID Hauser Northwest Inc ] On file with

Schlosser William E Michigan State University Exten

sion Courthouse Annex 12 North Third St L Anse Ml

49946 1085

agreements or through harvest permits A few

processors own a portion of the land that provides their raw material supply (Schlosser and

others 1991)

Processing sheds are businesses that purchase

special forest products from harvesters, process

plant materials, and sell processed products to

brokers, or in some cases directly to retailers

Interindustry trade of plant materials is not

uncommon Some businesses are horizontally

integrated with sheds located in diverse areas,

frequently through franchise agreements Interindustry trade also occurs among businesses to

obtain needed quantities or to facilitate the

marketing of specific products

A core of full-time, nearly year-round employees is often hired to process products Temporary, full-time employees also are hired during

October, November, and early December to

process the high volume of evergreen boughs and

other seasonal materials

Harvesters often shift from product to product,

harvesting Christmas greens in late fall and early

winter, wild edible mushrooms and other edibles in spring and fall, and floral greens during

all but the spring growing season Many harvesters, however, do not depend on this industry for

100 percent of their annual income In the 1989

survey of special forest products processors

(Schlosser and others 1991), respondents indicated that about 51 percent of the harvesters received only part time income through this industry This multiple-segment characteristic of the

special forest products labor force was further

confirmed during a more recent survey of the

wild edible mushroom industry (Schlosser and

Blatner 1995)

Although many part-time harvesters provide

products only for a specific segment of the

industry, some harvest products on a part-time

basis for multiple industry segments Most fulltime harvesters work in multiple industry segments Conversely, many harvesters tend to

specialize in one or two segments of the industry

by "following the harvest" as the season

progresses

Processing sheds also participate in multiple

segments About 42 percent of the wild edible

mushroom processors also process other special
forest products, especially floral greens and

other edibles Most floral greens processors

also purchase and market Christmas greens

(Schlosser and others 1991)

Major Plant Materials

Currently Used

Diverse conditions are required to produce the

various characteristics demanded by the various

markets for special forest products Market prices

for these products reflect distinctions in product

quality or grade Product quality or grade is

governed, in turn, by the forest conditions under

which the plant materials grew Although the

management of forest ecosystems for the production of special forest products concurrently with

other more traditional products is under study,

management prescriptions, including preservation, directly impact (positively and negatively

depending on the product) the quantity and

quality of special forest products available for

harvest

Floral greens—The evaluation of the east-side

floral greens industry is aided by evaluating the

structure and characteristics of west-side floral

greens processors Plants possessing deep green

color and long-lasting evergreen properties are

commonly used by the floral industry to accent

and complement floral arrangements Many

forest plants common to the Pacific Northwest

have these charactenstics

Salal with its deep green leathery leaves and light

green to red stem is used as background material

by the floral industry Evergreen huckleberry and

dwarf Oregongrape have fine featured evergreen

leaves that are highly valued as accent products

Both western sword-fern and deer-fern remain

highly flexible in the arrangement process

Harvested plants are marketed in various forms

For example, both evergreen huckleberry and

salal are harvested in two forms, regular and

short bunches (called tips or Johnny bunches)

Both forms are used in a similar manner, however, the Johnny bunches provide slightly different, fine-featured leaves for the arrangement

process Evergreen huckleberry is harvested in

third form —"red-huck " The different trade

names reflect differences in plant form and

coloring important to the floral trade The standand form of this plant with its wide-spreading

branches is referred to as huck-sprays Both

sprays and tips are grown under a protective forest

canopy producing deep green leaves Open-grown

plants form dense clumps with long, straight

shoots which turn deep red in the direct sunlight

(red-huck) All forms are used singly or in small

groups, as backdrops and filler to the main floral

arrangements

Some deciduous plants such as Scotch broom,

are used in the diverse floral greens market as

well Scotch broom is used in floral arrangements where its deep color forms a backdrop for

lighter plants Beargrass is used in three forms

(1) fresh, (2) preserved and (3) dried and sold

primarily to floral retailers in the Eastern United

States and Europe Many species of moss are harvested for the production of moss baskets used

for potting live and aitificial plants Other plant

species are harvested annually, many on an experimental basis or for unique market niches

Floral greens processors typically procure plant

materials up to an average of 300 miles from the

business headquarters A few businesses even

purchase plant materials from distances up to

1,000 miles away Extended purchase and trans

port distances, however generally are associated

with the annual harvest of baby's breath, a

noxious weed naturalized in the arid rangelands

east of the Cascade Range (Schlosser and others

1991)

Access to floral greens is typically procured via

leases or permits, which allow harvesters to collect one or more plant products from a given area

over a period of time Moral greens leases

generally are secured by independent harvesters

During 1989, only 45 percent of floral greens

processors leased harvest rights directly from

forest land owners accounting for 44 percent of

total product value at the wholesale level Leases

for the special forest products businesses that

leased harvest rights averaged 11,750 acres per

firm during 1989 (Schlosser and others 1991)

Salal products, including the standard spray form

and Johnny bunches, accounted for a total of

$13 1 million paid to the harvesters of the product

during 1989 (table 1) Beargrass accounted for

$115 million worth of product-acquisition

expense Evergreen huckleberry raw materials
Table 1—Floral greens and related harvest values during 1989 from western Washington,

western Oregon, and southwestern British Columbia

Species Volume Unit Value

1989 dollars

Dwarf Oregongrape 99,141 Bunch 59,485

Scotch-broom 345,698 Bunch 138,279

Salal 8,490,100 Bunch 7,641,090

Salaltips 10,878,589 Bunch 5,439,294

Sword-fern 2,463,092 Bunch 1527,117

Evergreen huckleberry 2,278,454 Bunch 1,480,995

Evergreen huckleberry (tips) 289,521 Bunch 107,123

Red-evergreen huckleberry (red-huck) 173,692 Bunch 112,900

Beargrass 12,781,823 Bunch 11,503,641

Moss 158,510 50 1b/sack 2,060,628

Total 30,070,552

cost processors about $17 million during

1989 Western sword-fern accounted for about

$15 million of revenue to the harvesters of the

raw materials (table 1)

Floral greens processors ship plant products to

various distribution channels including floral

brokers, wholesalers, retailers, and other processors Typically, floral greens processors store

products in waxed boxes in a cool, humid location until sufficient volume is present to ship a

tractor trailer load Storage in this manner is

typically no more than a few days in duration At

other times, multiple shipments may leave the

processor daily (Savage 1995) In other circumstances, shipments may be completed by combining production from multiple sheds

Of the products marketed to floral retailers in

1989, 17 percent was distributed locally by the

businesses, 28 percent was exported, and 52 percent was marketed to the rest of the United States

by value The Pacific Rim received 4 percent of

this value, whereas Europe received an estimated

24 percent (Schlosser and others 1991)

Christmas greens—Evergreen boughs are used

during the Christmas season for manufacturing

wreaths, door charms, garlands, and swags

Commonly used evergreen tree boughs include

those from noble fir, Douglas-fir, western redcedar, western white pine, subalpine fir, lodgepole pine, western juniper, Pacific silver fir, and

incense-cedar These species are distinguished

from many of the other species in the region due

primarily to their tendency to retain their needles

for prolonged periods after harvest

Evergreen boughs are harvested almost exclusively during fall and winter for use in Christmas

decorations Although noble fir is the preferred

species for wreaths, door charms, and swags,

many other species also are used Western

redcedar is used in the manufacture of garland

chains (a noncircular, wreathlike product), and as

additions to wreaths and charms Douglas-fir

provides inexpensive material for lower valued

wreaths, charms, and swags Western white pine

is a moderately valued product which is used to

accentuate other bough products The remaining

Note Evergreen huckleberry, evergreen huckleberry tips and red-evergreen huckleberry (red-huck) all refer to Vaccinium

ovatum The different common (trade) names reflect differences in the size of the product and plant coloring which are

important in the floral greens trade Evergreen huckleberry refers to sprays ranging in length from 24 to 30 inches Evergreen

huckleberry tips range in size from 18 to 20 inches Red evergreen huckleberry refers to the red tips (18 to 28 inches in

length) associated with Vaccinium ovatum grown in direct sunlight All of these products are used and marketed in different
Table 2—Major Christmas greens and related harvest values for 1989

Species

Subalpine fir

Noble fir

Western juniper

Incense-cedar

Lodgepole pine

Western white pine

Douglas-fir

Western redcedar

Other boughs

Cones

Holly

Total

NA = not available

Volume

900

9,310

283

176

272

995

1,317

2,375

NA

7,230,871

1,908,861

Units

Tons

Tons

Tons

Tons

Tons

Tons

Tons

Tons

Tons

Number

Pounds

Value

1989 dollars

575,840

6,703,116

141,705

133,242

97,856

457,503

263,393

1,092,385

59,242

253,080

2,672 405

12 449 767

species generally are used in combination with

other materials for seasonal decorations Other

products commonly harvested for use in the

production of greens include the cones of various

species and holly

The desired qualities of evergreen boughs are

found almost exclusively on young trees often

categorized as saplings to pole-size timber The

boughs found on mature and old-growth trees are

rarely used due to their woody appearance and

poor product quality

Schlosser and others (1991) estimated that $ 12 4

million worth of boughs and other Christmas

greens were harvested from the region during

1989 The most important Christmas greens in

terms of volume and value purchased were noble

fir, western redcedar, and holly (table 2)

Wild edible mushrooms—Many wild edible

mushrooms are found in Pacific Northwest

forests from northern California, Oregon,

Washington, and into the northern Rockies of

For purposes of this discussion wild edible mushrooms

are those fungal species hereinafter called mushrooms

that are native to the temperate forest zone of the Pacific

Northwest

Idaho and Montana ()! the wild edible mushrooms found throughout the region, about 25 to

30 species are harvested on a commercial basis,

however, only a few species are harvested for

resale on a large commercial scale The lour most

important species in tains of overall quantity

harvested and total market value are morels,

chanterelles, matsutake and boletes

Because mushrooms hint at different times of the

year, buyers often travel hundreds of miles to

acquire needed supplies of specific species Harvest begins during late winter-early spring in

northern California and continues through spring

and early summer in Washington, Oregon, Idaho,

Montana, and into western Canada and Alaska

The mushroom harvest usually is suspended

during the hot summer months, because few species fruit during this period Harvest resumes in

fall in about reverse order The spring harvest,

however, is far more important than the fall harvest east of the Cascade Range

Mushrooms are either cleaned and marketed fresh

to distributors in the United States, Asia, and

Europe, or dehydrated for later sale During the

harvest season, the highest quality mushrooms

are harvested and an freighted the next morning

for immediate consumption in fine restaurants

5
around the world or for sale through other outlets

(Schlosser and Blatner 1995) The timing of

shipments is critical to the fresh market, as mushrooms are bought and sold on a weight basis

Fresh mushrooms can lose an estimated 10 percent of their weight per day due to dehydration

Lower quality mushrooms and excess supplies of

high-quality mushrooms are dehydrated and

stored for later sale when the species are no

longer "in-season" and prices are elevated

Each mushroom species has unique characteristics, or a cultural significance, that influence

marketing efforts Processors frequently use brokers to market their products in Asia, Europe, and

the United States

Of the total pounds harvested during 1992, about

48 percent of these mushrooms, 1 9 million

pounds, were harvested from eastern Washington,

eastern Oregon, and Idaho East-side processors

paid about $9 9 million to harvesters for all mushrooms purchased during 1992 The wholesale

value of the east-side industry was estimated at

$118 million during 1992 (Schlosser and Blatner

1995)

Morels—During 1992, about 1 3 million pounds

of morels were harvested from Pacific Northwest

forests with an estimated value of $5 2 million

Table 3—Major wild edible mushrooms

and related harvest values for 1992 in

Washington, Oregon, and Idaho

Species Volume Value

Pounds 1992 dollars

Boletus species 481660 2 290 599

Chanterelle 1 135 175 3 664 261

Coral tooth 1488 5 761

Spreading hedgehog 42 993 122 438

Puffballs 2 209 3 648

Morels 1 325 827 5 222 237

Oregon black truffle

(black picoa) 5 951 456 013

Cauliflower 7 779 22 070

Matsutakc 824 647 7 955 687

Truffle spp 7 441 235 533

Others 100 084 288 833

Total 3 935 254 20 267 080

6

paid to the harvesters of the product (table 3)

Most morels, 96 percent, were harvested east of

the Cascade Range However, east-side mushroom processors handled only 876,500 pounds of

morels, whereas west-side and out-of-region processors purchased the remaining 449,300 pounds

East-side processors paid about $3 3 million to

morel harvesters during 1992 The discrepancy

between the 1 27 million pounds of morels harvested and the 876,000 pounds processed on the

east side reflects the competitiveness of west-side

processors as they extend their procurement

efforts to surrounding areas

Mushroom businesses indicated that 42 percent

of their morels were sold in the Western United

States, with some of this volume being resold to

marketing agents for resale The region's mushroom processors sold about 15 percent of their

morels to buyers in the Eastern United States

About 20 percent of the morel harvest was sold

directly by processors to Japan, with a roughly

equal amount (20 percent) exported to European

markets (Schlosser and Blatner 1995)

Chanterelles—The chanterelle harvest during

1992 totaled just over 1 1 million pounds for an

estimated value of $3 7 million paid to harvesters

(table 3) Only 5 percent of the total chanterelle

harvest was supplied from east-side forests Eastside processors, however, paid harvesters about

$1 2 million for 327,000 pounds of chanterelles

East-side mushroom processors competed on the

west-side market for chanterelle procurement for

about 270,000 pounds of chanterelles

About 30 percent of the total chanterelle harvest

was sold in the Western United States Again,

some portion of this volume was resold regionally and internationally through brokers Europe

was the final destination for about 46 percent of

the chanterelle harvest France received most of

the chanterelles, at 24 percent of the total, however, Germany, the Netherlands, and other

European markets received significant quantities

(Schlosser and Blatner 1995)

Matsutake—Matsutake are a highly valued

mushroom in the oriental market Also called the

pine mushroom, the matsutake is similar to an

oriental mushroom that was over-harvested in

Asia and is now considered rare by many About

825,000 pounds of matsutake were harvested

during 1992 with a total value of $7 96 million
paid to harvesters (table 3) About 25 percent

(203,000 pounds) of the matsutake harvest came

from east-side forests during 1992 East-side

businesses processed about 28 percent of the

total matsutake harvest, paying harvesters an

estimated total of $3.5 million

Japan directly received most (70 percent) of the

1992 matsutake harvest exported by the region's

mushroom processors Most of the remaining

amount of the harvest (21 percent) was sold to

the Canadian market It is speculated that most of

the matsutake purchased in the United States by

Canadian businesses were re-exported to Japan

to fulfill contractual obligations for this mushroom in that market (Schlosser and Blatner 1995)

Boletes—The bolete harvest totaled about

482,000 pounds during 1992, with an estimated

value of $2 3 million paid to harvesters (table 3)

Most (72 percent) of the boletes harvested in the

region came from east-side forests East-side

processors, however, generally were not active in

west-side procurement of boletes, processing

about 73 percent of the total bolete harvest

East-side businesses paid about $1 5 million to

purchase boletes from harvesters during 1992

About 15 percent of all boletes marketed by the

regional mushroom processors were sold in

Eastern U S markets and 27 percent in Western

US markets Asia received about 12 percent of

the exports from this group Europe purchased

about 46 percent of the 1992 harvest France was

the largest single importer (Schlosser and Blatner

1995)

Large quantities of wild edible mushrooms also

are harvested for personal consumption by recreational pickers throughout the region Recreational pickers are an important consideration in

the management of this resource, because there

are many recreational pickers in direct competition with commercial pickers for the resource

Employment by Segment

Given the high degree of cross-sector employment within the special forest products industry,

it is difficult to estimate the total number of

individuals involved in the harvest of products on

an industrywide basis Research provides estimates of several individuals involved in the harvesting of floral and Christmas greens, wild

edible mushrooms and Pacific yew One must

recognize, however that some harvesters may be

represented more than once when attempting to

estimate total employment.

Floral and Christmas greens—Floral greens

has traditionally been the backbone of the over

all industry, providing stability to the other segments through a nearly year-round presence in

western Washington and western Oregon During

1989, the floral greens segment paid an estimated

$38 0 million to about 5 420 harvesters of native

plants and plant parts (Schlosser and others 1991),

located almost exclusively in western Washington, western Oregon md southwestern British

Columbia To date no reliable estimates of the

number of floral greens harvesters working on the

east side exists, although ongoing research by

Schlosser and Blatner should answer this

question

During the winter months, when snowfall has

covered the crop or made roads impassable, many

of the products are not harvested This problem is

partly mitigated by the comparatively mild winters experienced on the Pacific Coast of Washington and Oregon Snow is a significant factor, however, east of the Cascade Range and will influence

the prices paid for species that are only harvested

in this area During the growth period, the plant

tips are fragile and do not react well to harvest,

transportation, or storage As a result, this segment of the industry closes down during the

spring growing season

Processing sheds paid over $9 6 million to the

harvesters during 1989 Boughs were harvested

during the roughly 70 day harvest period, starting

in October and running through early December

(Schlosser and others 1991) Again, these values

do not reflect any employment by east-side

Christmas ornament processors

Many of the businesses that process Christmas

greens also are involved in the floral greens

industry, thus several individuals are involved in

both the harvest and processing of floral greens

and evergreen boughs One advantage to this

arrangement is the facilities and personnel necessary to support one segment are often sufficient

to support the other.
Employment data for the floral and Christmas

greens segments of the industry indicate that

about 10,300 individuals participated in harvest

and processing This included about 2,670 full

time and 2,750 part-time harvesters Processors

employed about 700 individuals full-time, yearround during 1989, about 4,180 individuals were

hired as full-time seasonal employees (Schlosser

and others 1991)

Wild edible mushrooms—The wild edible

mushroom segment is smaller than the combined floral and Christmas greens segments of

the industry About 10,400 individuals participated in the 1992 wild edible mushroom harvest

on a seasonal basis over the three-state area The

wild edible mushroom segment employs about

520 individuals in the three-state area for the

processing of mushrooms (Schlosser and Blatner

1995)

Although many wild edible mushroom businesses

are open year-round, the average mushroom business was open for 170 days (about 5 6 months)

during 1992 (Schlosser and Blatner 1995) Eastside businesses were open slightly fewer days on

the average at 155 days (5 months) each

Mushroom processors indicated that about

35 percent of the wild edible mushroom harvesters sold mushrooms for primary income,

whereas the remaining 65 percent sold mushrooms for supplemental income during the harvest

period (Schlosser and Blatner 1995) It was

estimated that about 17 percent of the mushroom

harvesters also harvest other special forest products Mushroom harvesters, however, tend to be

associated with other industries as well About 13

percent of the mushroom harvesters were also

employed in the logging industry, with about 6

percent also employed by the commercial fishing

industry About 4 percent of the harvesters were

employed by the Christmas tree industry, with

another 6 percent employed in fighting wildfires

and prescribed burning An additional 10 percent

of the harvesters were students (college and high

school) About 14 percent of the mushroom

harvesters also received welfare, and 13 percent

received unemployment compensation (Schlosser

and Blatner 1995)

Estimated Contribution to the

Regional Economy During

1993

Frequently asked questions about the special

forest products industry by economic development experts, policy analysts, and land managers

include How much has the industry grown since

the 1989 survey? What is the economic growth

potential of the special forest products industry?

and How important is the industry on the east

side? Unfortunately, none of these questions are

easily answered

Schlosser and others (1991) estimated that the

floral and Christmas greens segments generated

$128.5 million in product sales at the wholesale

level during 1989, primarily in western Washington, western Oregon, and southeastern British

Columbia Processors located in this area purchased $38 million worth of floral greens and

$9 6 million worth of boughs from harvesters

during 1989

Schlosser and Blatner (1995) estimated that wild

edible mushrooms generated about $41 1 million

in product sales at the wholesale level during

1992 Wild edible mushroom processors in

Washington, Oregon, and Idaho paid about $20 4

million for the acquisition of 3 94 million pounds

of wild edible mushrooms during 1992 About

$11.8 million of this value was generated by

east-side businesses (1 9 million pounds)

The 1992 survey of the wild edible mushroom

industry (Schlosser and Blatner 1995) included

processors throughout Washington, Oregon, and

Idaho In addition, processors located outside the

three-state area were surveyed relative to the

volume of mushrooms harvested in the study

region

Information on subsequent surveys of these

industries has not been completed to date, and,

since both studies were the first of their kind, no

historical trend information exists relative to the

growth of the industry Estimating the total size

of the industry and its impact on the regional

economy is further confounded by the fact that

the original survey of the floral and Christmas

greens segments of the industry only considered

processors with businesses based in western

Washington, western Oregon, and southwestern
British Columbia (Schlosser and others 1991)

The study area considered represented the largest

concentration of floral and Christmas greens

processors at that time and represented a logical

first effort Over the past few years, however,

expansion of the special forest products industry

east of the Cascade Range indicates a need for a

larger regional perspective when estimating the

overall size of the industry

Further, the past 4 years have witnessed the

development and marketing of new products, the

opening of many new businesses, and the closure

of other long-standing companies In short, the

industry remains highly dynamic in character,

making growth projections difficult

Given these data limitations, it seems likely that

the floral and Christmas greens segments of the

industry have either just been keeping up with

inflation or have been expanding at a rate of up

to 3 percent per year in real terms (3 percent in

excess of inflation) The average inflation rate

since the 1989 survey has been about 3 percent

The 3-percent growth rate assumes that the

industry has grown at about the same rate or

slightly faster than that of the overall U S

economy

Given these assumptions, we believe the floral

and Christmas greens segments would have contributed between $146 0 and $163 8 million

dollars in real terms during 1993, primarily to the

regional economy of western Washington, western Oregon, and southwestern British Columbia

Anecdotal evidence suggests, however, that the

floral greens segment may have grown at a

slower rate due to depressed international markets, whereas the Christmas greens segment has

experienced increased product prices and

volume The much smaller floral and Christmas

greens segments located east of the Cascade

Range may have accounted for an additional $5

to $10 million in product sales at the wholesale

level during the same year

The wild edible mushroom industry also has

continued to undergo changes since the 1992

survey was conducted (Schlosser and Blatner

1995) Based on the results of the 1992 survey,

it is estimated that the wild edible mushroom

industry contributed $26 8 million to economies

of western Washington and western Oregon, and

$11.8 million to the economies of eastern

Washington, eastern Oregon, and Idaho in product

sales at the wholesale level Assuming the same

range of growth rates (0-3 percent), the wild

edible mushroom industry probably increased

from $41 1 million in 1992 to between $42 5 and

$43 7 million in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho

during 1993

Any estimate of the contribution of the other edibles and medicinals segment of the special forest

product industry represents no more than an

"educated guess" based on anecdotal evidence

However, given the increasing production of specialty jams and jellies by firms located throughout Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana,

and the relatively high value of the products

produced and the many other specialty products

produced by businesses in this sector of the

industry, it seems likely that this little-known

segment may have contributed an additional $2 to

$10 million to the economies of the four-state

area In addition, many of the specialty jam and

jelly processors also seem to be located east of

the Cascade Range

Summing these values suggests that the special

forest products industry contributed between

$195.5 and $227.5 million in product sales at the

wholesale level to the region's economy during

1993 Most of this estimated value was earned by

firms located west of the Cascade Range It is

important to note, however, that much of the

income earned occurs in the rural communities of

the region, many of which have been severely

impacted by recent reductions in timber harvest

levels The contribution of these dollars to the

rural economy of the region are particularly

noteworthy when one considers that these dollars

turn over 1 5 to 2 0 times before leaving these

same communities There is also tremendous

potential for the expansion of this sector in the

inland empire

Potential Products Marketed

From East-Side Forests

Although most of the special forest products

industry is based west of the Cascade Range in

Washington and Oregon (in terms of value,

volume, and the number of established processors), a significant amount of product is supplied

from east-side ecosystems As businesses become

more competitive in this region, certain unique
product markets will be developed by east-side

businesses In the short term, expansion of the

east-side industry will likely be in areas with

strong product markets primarily defined by

existing west-side businesses The long-term

growth of the east-side industry, however, will

likely be through new products unique to this

region

Floral greens—Floral greens species with the

greatest potential for initial development in this

region are those species common to both regions Initially these products will include bear

grass, Pachistima, western sword-fern, baby's

breath, and two Oregongrape species

Beargrass—Beargrass is the most widely harvested floral greens species in the region It is har

vested from cool and moist forest habitat types

across the Pacific Northwest, generally from

higher elevations Although a significant volume

of beargrass is harvested from the east side, most

beargrass is processed west of the Cascade Range

for final sale A handful of existing east-side

businesses process and market this product

Pachistima—Pachistima, also called Oregon

box-wood, is a floral greens species found

throughout eastern Washington, eastern Oregon,

and northern Idaho It is marketed in various

forms including fresh product, dyed, or preserved and dyed Although it has a striking

resemblance to evergreen huckleberry sprays,

Pachistima has been used only minimally as a

substitute for this species in its nondyed form

The limited amount of substitution probably

stems from two factors (1) buyers and retailers

are familiar with handling evergreen huckleberry but have less experience with Pachistima,

and (2) supplies of evergreen huckleberry are

sufficient to meet current demand

Western sword-fern—Although the quantity

of western sword-fern harvested west of the

Cascade Range is low compared to other products, it does represent a significant volume and

value for some businesses Little western swordProducts that are preserved have their stem bases placed in

preservative chemicals such as glycerin that slows the

deterioration process and increases leaf retention to

branches Sometimes dyes are placed in the preserve

chemical to color the plant material

fern is currently harvested from east-side forests

If certain events occur in the future, however,

east-side processors would have the opportunity

to enter this otherwise limited market Potential

future which would create the opportunity for an

east-side entry into this market include (1) increased land use restrictions on the west side

limiting the harvest of western sword-fern with

no accompanying east-side restrictions, or (2)

increased demand for western sword-fern at a

time when selected east-side processors are

positioned to take advantage of the market, or (3)

both scenarios occurring at about the same time

Oregongrape species—Dwarf Oregongrape

accounts for a small, but significant, annual harvest in the floral greens industry Although dwarf

Oregongrape does not commonly grow east of

the Cascade Range, two related species do grow

on the east side tall Oregongrape and creeping

Oregongrape Neither species is currently harvested on a large commercial level, however,

both sport the hollylike leaflets of their dwarf

Oregongrape cousin and are logical substitutes

There are morphological differences in the species such as color, length, and rigidity, but these

characteristics may provide unique marketing

traits as opposed to product deficiencies

Marketing efforts focusing on the minor

differences among the three Berberis species

may be able to capitalize on a niche market

Special range plants—Special range plants

include various plants and plant parts collected

from the arid and semiarid rangelands of the east

side Like the special forest products discussed

above, these plants and plant parts are commonly

used in the floral industry

Baby's breath is a noxious weed of Euro-Asian

origin that has naturalized across much of the

east side and portions of the interior United

States (Darwent and Coupland 1966) The vegetative growth of this plant is harvested by the

floral greens industry of the Pacific Northwest

During the 1989 survey of floral greens processors (Schlosser and others 1991), it was determined that west-side processors purchased about

$5 0 million worth of baby's breath from harvesters A significant amount of this product is

10
preserved with glycerin and dyed for use in floral arrangements Because a significant amount

of this product is processed on the east side, we

believe that this value substantially underestimates the total size of this product line

Other special range products include perennial

pepperweed, clasping (annual) pepperweed, black

henbane, Indian ricegrass, arrowleaf balsamroot,

and many other lesser known products Many of

these special range products are marketed as

dried plant as opposed to preserved There has

been no research on special range products in this

region As the floral greens processors continue

to expand on the east side, further research will

be needed

Christmas greens—The boughs of many evergreen tree species common in the Pacific Northwest have been used for several decades in the

making of wreaths, swags, and charms The best

boughs come from trees with the ability to retain

their needles for extended periods after they have

been severed from the tree

Except for noble fir, western juniper, and incensecedar, every species of tree used as Christmas

greens is found on the east side Subalpine fir is a

common substitute for noble fir in the wreathmaking process in this region Other suitable species also are available on the east side for harvest

with little to no difference in quality

Wild edible mushrooms—The mushroom segment of the industry currently operates throughout the east side The most widely harvested and

marketed mushroom species in this region is the

morel Also harvested from this region are

matsutake, boletus, cauliflower mushroom, black

picoa, and spreading hedgehog Other species are

harvested on a recreational or smaller commercial scale (Schlosser and Blatner 1995)

Businesses locating mushroom processing facilities on the east side will likely process mushrooms from throughout the Pacific Northwest

Processing mushrooms involves many steps,

including training a reliable workforce, identifying species, harvesting, cleaning, sorting,

grading, and either packaging and shipping for

fresh delivery (usually by air freight) or dehydrating or freezing, packaging, and storage for

later sale Difficulties in the marketing phase

should not be underestimated Many mushroom

producers in the Pacific Northwest choose to sell

their products to mushroom brokers as opposed to

finding markets in the United States, Europe, and

Asia (Schlosser and Blatner 1995)

Other edibles and medicinals—Other edibles

and medicinals include various berry species

commonly collected in this region dwarf

huckleberry, blue huckleberry, big huckleberry,

dwarf bilberry, western huckleberry, early blueberry, grouse whortleberry, Saskatoon serviceberry, and elderberries Medicinals include

quinine conk, cascara bark, roots, herbs, and

other similar products

Probably the best-known product of this segment on the east side is the edible huckleberry

The edible huckleberry season is highly variable,

similar to the mushroom harvest, beginning by

midsummer and dwindling by late fall There are

countless other plant materials harvested in limited quantities for sale in the region's health food

and natural medicine stores

Managing Special Forest

Products From an Ecosystem

Perspective

An ecosystem-management perspective provides

unique opportunities for combining the production of special forest products and other traditional forest uses Many of the plants used in the

floral greens industry thrive in the forest environments created by past management activities

that retained an overstory tree canopy These and

other management prescriptions are encompassed

within ecosystem management and are complementary to various other forest outputs

(nontimber) within the region including recreation, wildlife, aesthetics, water quality, and

special forest products

Historically, the special forest products industry

has been described as having a "hunter-gatherer"

mentality, with notable exceptions But as this

industry has expanded the need for astute management of the resource has become more critical More intensive management, in turn, requires

a formal assessment of plant growth and regrowth

potential to support this economically important

industry As forest management moves into

ecosystem-based techniques, the need for management prescriptions that reflect specific plant

11
responses is accentuated for various reasons.

These reasons include ecosystem viability,

commercial usage, and unknown biological

opportunities.

The quantity and quality of special forest products on many forest sites is tied directly to the

forest habitat type and the potential of that plant

community to produce desired plant species. Forest habitat types have been defined in this region

by Cooper and others (1991) and other experts.

Additionally, much of the federally owned and

managed forest lands in the region have been

categorized by habitat type and other information, providing a unique source of information for

managers interested in special forest products.

The first step in ecosystem management for special forest products in the region is to identify the

habitat type of the site. This allows the land manager to not only characterize the potential of the

ecosystem to produce climax plant communities

but also (identify possible) successional pathways. Many plant species, such as Pachistima,

are present only during the early and midsuccessional development of certain habitat

types. Thus, a management plan involving the

use of Pachistima would involve management

that creates forest conditions at or near midsuccessional status.

The evaluation proceeds by analyzing the understory plants capable of growing and thriving on

the site. This is accomplished by mapping out

ecosystem development along successional pathways. It may involve recognizing certain plant

species as present only during early successional

stages of development, such as those species

growing after significant site disturbances (for

example fire or clearcutting). It also may involve

identifying certain species as growing only in

climax plant communities. The identification will

depend greatly on the specific plant community

and the biological characteristics of the

ecosystem.

To illustrate, on the western hemlock-queen's

cup beadlily habitat type-beargrass phase, beargrass is present in all stages of forest succession

shortly after site disturbances, during midsuccessional development, and in successionally

advanced climax plant communities. Product

quality, however, is maximized during the latter

stages of mid-successional development and in

the climax plant community. A forest land manager interested in managing this site for special

forest products would be wise to maintain forest

conditions at or near the preferred phases.

Forest Succession and Special

Forest Products

Forest land managers are familiar with the management of forest lands and the impact of different management prescriptions on tree growth

and tree regeneration. Many managers are also

familiar with controlling understory vegetation.

What is less well known is how to manage a

forest site for special forest products, while manipulating site conditions to enhance the production of more traditional forest products or from a

broader ecosystem perspective. An assessment of

floral greens potential on forest lands west of the

Cascade Range in Washington and Oregon was

completed by Schlosser and others (1992). The

following discussion is an initial evaluation of

the potential of managing forest lands for selected

special forest products east of the Cascade Range

in eastern Washington, eastern Oregon, northern

Idaho, and western Montana.

Beargrass—Although beargrass occurs across

many forest habitat types in the region, quality

products need specific site conditions to be harvestable and profitable. High-quality beargrass is

deep green and has wide, firm blades longer than

28 inches. Browned tips and a yellowish tint to

the blades indicate poor and unacceptable product quality.

Beargrass occurs on three habitat types within the

Douglas-fir series (table 4); however, its shortened length and commonly yellowed appearance

makes commercial harvest of this species unlikely

or sporadic within this series. Beargrass occurs

abundantly across the grand fir series, subalpine

fir series, and the mountain hemlock series (table

4) with exceptionally high quality and normally

profitable harvest. The highest occurrence of

beargrass is represented where beargrass, fool's

huckleberry, and twinflower are the indicators of

the understory climax plant community. On these

sites, beargrass occurs on between 75 and 100

percent of the sites with coverage values between

28 and 51 percent (table 4). The cooler and wetter

sites represented in the western redcedar and

12
western hemlock series do support beargrass

populations, but generally not at acceptable

harvest levels with the exception of the western

hemlock-fool's huckleberry series On this latter

site, beargrass occurs on nearly every site and

occupies about 70 percent coverage (table 4)

Although beargrass has the potential of occurring on many sites within this region, forest

management practices will greatly influence its

quality for commercial usage Beargrass is not

normally harvested from stands after a clearcut

or a seed tree harvest until forest conditions have

created a closed forest canopy for a prolonged

period When managed as a three-entry system,

the shelterwood regeneration technique can be

operated with beargrass harvest after the first

harvest entry but not after the second or third

entries Beargrass harvest potential is strongly

influenced by overstory forest conditions Three

general site characteristics are associated with

the production of high-quality beargrass (1)

diffused sunlight through an elevated forest canopy, (2) limited soil compaction, and (3) sites

exhibiting a conservation of site moisture (that is,

north- and east-facing slopes, and appropriately

sized openings in the overstory to allow adequate

infiltration of snowfall)

It is generally accepted that the harvest of beargrass, and most other floral greens species, is

eliminated for many years after a regeneration

harvest of trees on the site When a commercial

thinning or other type of intermediate stand

practice is conducted, however, floral greens

harvest can begin after 3 to 7 years of regrowth

This period will fluctuate depending on the site

and the application of specific ecosystemmanagement practices

Pachistima—Pachistima sprays generally are

characterized by wide spreading branches, many

leaves scattered evenly up the spray, and fine

features charactenstic of a healthy plant Harvested sprays are generally between 26 and 30

inches in length with a small proportion shorter

Pachistima sprays generally are harvested from

forests of mid-successional status On many sites,

Pachistima will be present in early successional

stands, but the product generally requires an

overstory canopy to develop usable products

Unlike beargrass, Pachistima does not generally

require an elevated forest canopy to develop

salable products, thus commercial harvest generally can begin after site disturbances sooner

than beargrass harvest Additionally, Pachistima

harvest is less affected by intermediate stand

practices such as thinning and pruning On certain

sites, this plant will be present on advanced forest

communities, but occurrence generally is reduced

due to increased shading and competition factors

Pachistima has a wide ecological range occurring

on the semimesic habitat types of the Douglas-fir

series through all of the wetter and cooler forest

series On the drier sites, commercial harvest of

this species generally will occur on the Douglasfir/dwarf huckleberry habitat type where it is

found on about 50 percent of these sites with a

coverage of about 32 percent where it is found

(table 4) As available moisture increases through

the grand fir series, Pachistima has constancy

values between 10 and 40 percent with coverage

values ranging from only a trace to almost 40 percent (table 4) Commercial harvest on the grand

fir series should be limited to those sites where

both constancy and coverage values exceed 30

percent Across the subalpine fir, mountain hemlock, western redcedar and western hemlock

series, Pachistima occurs sporadically on many

sites, but coverage values are unacceptably low

It may be harvestable on certain sites, but management efforts will be limited on these harsher

sites The greatest potential for Pachistima harvest

will be found on Douglas-fir and grand fir habitat

types

Forest management activities also affect commercial Pachistima harvest, however, the effect

will be less than most other floral greens species

Major stand disturbances, such as a stand replacement (for example, clearcut, seedtree, and shelterwood regeneration techniques), will generally

preclude commercial Pachistima harvest for a

period dependent on the time necessary to create

an overstory canopy Intermediate stand practices

such as thinning, salvage, and sanitation harvests,

however, will result in only brief delays in harvest

ranging from 1 to 5 years depending on the degree

of change created in the affected environments

Western sword-fern—Western sword-fern is

marketed around the world as a fresh product for

use in floral arrangements Long fronds with

deep green color an desired commodities on the

13
Table 4—Selected special forest products occurence across selected forest habitat types in northern Idaho

Floral greens Christmas greens Edible berries

Bear- Pachis- Western Oregon- Subalpine Douglas Western Western Dwarf Blue/globe Dwarf Grouse

Forest habitat types grass tima sword-fern grape fir -fir redcedar white pine huckleberry huckleberry billberry whortleberry

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Values a --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ponderosa pine series:

Bluebunch wheatgrass -( ) -( ) -( ) -(T) -( ) 1 (T) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( )Idaho fescue -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) 1 (T) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( )Common snowberry -( ) -( ) 1 (T) 4 (15) -( ) 1 (T) -( ) -( ) 1 (3) -( ) -( ) -( )Ninebark -( ) -( ) 3 (T) 6 (3) -( ) (-) -( ) -( ) 4 (T) -( ) -( ) -( )

Douglas-fir series :

Bluebunch wheatgrass -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) 10 (15) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( )Idaho fescue -( ) -( ) -( ) 5 (T) -( ) 10 (20) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( )Pinegrass 2 (15) 2 (T) -( ) 8 (2) -( ) 10 (54) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( )Shiny-leaf spiraca -( ) -( ) -( ) 1 (T) -( ) 10 (40) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( )Common snowberry -( ) 1 (T) -( ) 4 (7) -( ) 10 (57) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( ) -( )Ninebark 1 (19) 1 (1) -( ) 5 (4) -( ) 10 (51) -( ) -( ) - ( ) 1 (2) - ( ) - ( )

Grand fir series :

Shiny-leaf spiraca 2 (T) 1 (38) 1 (T) 6 (2) -( ) 10 (31) - ( ) 1 (T) - ( ) 5 (1) - ( ) - ( )Nninebark 1 (2) 4 (17) 1 (T) 6 (4) -( ) 9 (53) - ( ) 3 (3) - ( ) 4 (3) - ( ) - ( )Beargrass 10 (40) 2 (4) - ( ) 6 (1) 6 (5) 9 (18) - ( ) 1 (1) - ( ) 10 (37) - ( ) 5 (28)Twinflower 9 (28) 4 (5) - ( ) 4 (T) 4 (6) 9 (38) - ( ) 1 (T) - ( ) 9 (43) - ( ) 3 (T)Queen cup beadlily 2 (2) 2 (12) 4 (T) 5 (2) 1 (1) 9 (26) 1 (2) 3 (7) 1 (15) 7 (10) - ( ) 1 (15)Wild ginger 4 (T) 4 (7) 3 (8) 2 (1) 1 (2) 9 (40) 2 (T) 2 (7) - ( ) 6 (9) - ( ) - ( )Arrowleaf 4 (2) 3 (T) 2 (T) - ( ) 3 (2) 2 (8) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 8 (22) - ( ) - ( )

Subalpine fir series :

Smooth woodrush 5 (T) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (48) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 3 (9) - ( ) 5 (18)Beargrass 10 (51) 2 (7) - ( ) 1 (T) 10 (37) 7 (24) - ( ) 2 (8) 1 (15) 10 (45) - ( ) 6 (1)Fool’s huckleberry 8 (48) 2 (3) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (60) 2 (T) - ( ) 2 (15) - ( ) 10 (36) - ( ) 5 (T)Queen cup beadlily - ( ) 3 (T) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (54) 7 (8) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (25) - ( ) 3 (T)Twisted-stalk 7 (5) 1 (T) 1 (T) - ( ) 10 (26) 2 (10) 1 (T) - ( ) 1 (T) 9 (8) - ( ) 4 (13)

14
Table 4—Selected special forest products occurence across selected forest habitat types in northern Idaho (continued)

Floral greens Christmas greens Edible berries

Bear- Pachis- Western Oregon- Subalpine Douglas Western Western Dwarf Blue/globe Dwarf Grouse

Forest habitat types grass tima sword-fern grape fir -fir redcedar white pine huckleberry huckleberry billberry whortleberry

-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Values a --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mountain hemlock series :

Bluejoint reedgrass 7 (10) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (23) 3 (19) - ( ) - ( ) 3 (T) 7 (10) 2 (T) 8 (3)Beargrass 10 (51) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (33) - ( ) - ( ) 1 (T) - ( ) 8 (17) 1 (15) 9 (25)Fool’s huckleberry 10 (29) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (33) - ( ) - ( ) 1 (2) - ( ) 8 (29) 1 (15) 9 (15)Queen cup headlily 10 (46) 5 (5) 1 (T) - ( ) 7 (13) 7 (8) 1 (T) 6 (7) - ( ) 9 (46) - ( ) 2 (T)Twisted-stalk 7 (T) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (51) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (21) - ( ) 7 (2)

Western redcedar series :

Queen cup beadliliy 2 (2) 4 (7) 4 (2) 4 (2) 1 (T) 8 (21) 10 (43) 4 (7) 1 (2) 6 (7) + (T) - ( )Wild ginger 3 (2) 3 (3) 5 (1) 1 (3) 1 (8) 6 (23) 10 (50) 3 (5) (-2) 7 (3) - ( ) - ( )Oak-fern 2 (T) 5 (2) 7 (3) 1 (T) 2 (6) 2 (5) 10 (75) 4 (4) - ( ) 9 (13) - ( ) - ( )Maidenhair fern + (T) - ( ) 9 (13) + (T) - ( ) 3 (12) 10 (60) 3 (7) - ( ) 7 (T) - ( ) - ( )Ladyfern - ( ) 1 (T) 8 (3) 1 (T) - ( ) 2 (T) 10 (60) 2 (2) - ( ) 4 (1) - ( ) - ( )Devil’s club 1 (T) 3 (T) 4 (2) - ( ) 1 (2) - ( ) 9 (59) 4 (3) - ( ) 5 (7) - ( ) - ( )

Western hemlock series :

Fool’s huckleberry 10 (70) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (46) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) - ( ) 10 (18) 3 (T) - ( )Queen cup beadlily 4 (T) 7 (5) 2 (T) 2 (T) 2 (27) 5 (28) 9 (37) 6 (9) + (T) 9 (7) + (T) 1 (2)Wild ginger 2 (T) 7 (4) 4 (1) 3 (1) 1 (T) 5 (21) 5 (36) 6 (10) - ( ) 7 (2) + (3) - ( )

Oak-fern 3 (T) 7 (5) 2 (1) + (T) 2 (5) 2 (3) 6 (48) 7 (8) 1 (T) 9 (7) + (T) + (T)

a Numbers presented are constancy values followed by coverage values in parentheses ( ).z Code to constancy values :

T = trace 9<%)+ = 0.5% 2 = 15-25% 4 = 35-45% 6 = 55-65% 10 = 95-100%1 = 5-15% 3 = 25-35% 5 = 45-55% 7 65-75% - = 0%

z Code to coverage values ( ) :

Numbers represented average percentage of canopy coverage ont eh plots where the species occurred :

z Table adapted from Copper and others (1991).

15
world floral market Fronds in excess of 30 inches

are desired with no discoloration or breaks in the

frond Mature annual growth without reproductive spores is harvested from this plant at the

base, leaving older and damaged fronds in the

woods Harvest is possible annually from communities supporting this product

Western sword-fern is found only on the more

mesic forest habitat types of advanced forest

communities where highly filtered sunlight results

from elevated tree canopies Although represented

on several grand fir habitats (table 4), commercial harvest there is unlikely Commercial harvest of this species will have the greatest success

on the western redcedar series where it is represented on as many as 95 percent of the sites with

up to 13 percent coverage (table 4) This seemingly low coverage value traditionally represents

acceptable harvest levels of this species because

of the overlapping nature of the fronds (Schlosser

and others 1992)

Forest management activities significantly affect

the harvestability of this plant species Western

sword-fern, as well as other fern species (for

example, deer fern), requires a dense overstory

tree canopy elevated well above the fern to produces the characteristics desired by the industry

Additionally, elevated soil moisture with moderate to slow subsurface water movement produces western sword-fern of exceptional quality

Such sites normally are found in conjunction

with north and east slopes, in steep river valleys,

and near midslope springs Even intermediate

stand practices will influence product quality

when the amount of sunlight reaching the forest

floor is increased These effects will be reduced

on north- and east-facing sites, but a nominal

harvest delay of 5 to 10 years should be expected

when removing portions of the overstory canopy

Oregongrape species—Tall Oregongrape and

creeping Oregongrape are east-side relatives of

dwarf Oregongrape with future market potential The edible berry of this species also makes a

jelly similar in taste to grape, and the roots have

been used by Native Americans for dye and

medicinal purposes (Patterson and others 1985)

Much ecological data have been collected for

creeping Oregongrape (Cooper and others 1991),

whereas little ecological data have been collected

for tall Oregongrape The latter species, however,

tend to occur on more mesic sites than does

creeping Oregongrape (Patterson and others

1985) Both Oregongrape species tend to occur

on the more and forest habitat types including the

ponderosa pine series, Douglas-fir series, and into

the grand fir series Their representation in the

wetter and cooler series is limited and not generally commercially harvestable Across the

Douglas-fir and grand fir series, creeping

Oregongrape will be found commercially on 50

to 100 percent of the sites, with coverage values

between a trace and 7 percent Although these

coverage values are low, they do signify commercially harvestable levels

Oregongrape species can be harvested from

stands relatively soon after major stand disturbances including clearcut, seedtree, and shelterwood regeneration techniques This species

regenerates readily from rhizomes, even after

fire, to preharvest levels within 5 to 10 years

(Patterson and others 1985)

Christmas greens—East of the Cascade Range,

there are a handful of species that have been

marketed and used for this industry (table 4)

High-quality bough products are harvested from

trees of sapling to pole-timber size Short annual

branch growth, with deep color and abundance of

retained live needles, is desired in the construction of wreaths and other Christmas ornamental

products Unfortunately, boughs are not generally

cut off the tree at the bole Instead, branches are

severed at a point where usable material is maximized with respect to the price paid per pound

for the boughs Although many land managers

would like a bough harvest to accomplish a

pruning of the forest, additional work needs to

be completed to accomplish the pruning activity

Many land managers have successfully merged

these two activities through creative pruningbough contracts

The bough harvest begins shortly after the first

sustained frost of the fall and ends by early

December Generally, boughs are harvested from

trees by using pole clippers extended to 20, 30,

and even 40 feet above the cutter Cut boughs are

collected and baled into 30- to 50-pound bales

and loaded onto a truck or trailer Once delivered

16
to the processing facility, the individual boughs

are processed by cutting the usable tips (4 to 8

inches) from the woody branches The stems are

discarded, and the usable material is processed

into the final product

The logical time to harvest evergreen boughs is

when completing a thinning or pruning of the

stand Most sites will yield multiple commercial

bough harvests

Edible berries—The berry species commonly

collected in this region include dwarf huckleberry, blue huckleberry, big huckleberry, dwarf

bilberry, western huckleberry, early blueberry,

grouse whortleberry, and Saskatoon serviceberry

The most popular species being harvested and

processed in the region are the huckleberry species, particularly blue huckleberry and big

huckleberry The berry harvest occurs in midsummer through fall depending on elevation, seasonal moisture, and temperature fluctuations

Unlike the floral greens species discussed earlier,

edible berries rely on either direct or slightly

filtered sunlight to grow and thrive Forest managers have long realized that forest habitat types

suited to huckleberry species (table 4) need

immediate tree regeneration to prevent occupation for prolonged periods with huckleberries

Many berry harvesters see this issue from the

opposite viewpoint, recognizing that tree regeneration ultimately reduces the berry harvest

Additionally, many forest land managers see

potential conflicts between berry harvesters and

bears that traditionally spend prolonged periods

in these areas relying on the berries for a large

portion of their seasonal diet This is particularly

true in the extreme northern part of the region

where grizzly bears (Ursus hombihs) may be

encountered

Blue huckleberry and big huckleberry are considered ecological equivalents in northern Idaho

(Patterson and others 1985) The two species occur in commercially viable densities across much

of the grand fir series, subalpine series, mountain

hemlock senes, western redcedar senes, and the

western hemlock senes (table 4) The greatest

densities occur on the first three mentioned forest

senes where 80 to 100 percent occurrence is

common and 25 to 46 percent coverage is

attained (table 4) It is on these sites that

commercial harvests of edible berries will be

the most concentrated

Unlike the huckleberry species, Saskatoon serviceberry is found on drier sites including the

ponderosa pine series Douglas-fir series, and into

the grand fir series (table 4) Little is known about

the management needed to improve Saskatoon

serviceberry populations

The harvest of edible berry species has few negative effects to forest ecosystem management

Berries can be harvested from the same plant annually, because the h n \ ester does not destroy the

plant or its ability to pioduce bernes annually

Wild edible mushrooms—Little is currently

known about the ecology and management of wild

edible mushroom species in the region Morels

are the most widely hai vested east-side mushroom species Morels are commonly harvested

from this region in spimg and early summer

Generally, morels are found on forest sites during

the first several yeais after they have been harvested or burned Motel production drops off

sharply after tree regeneration forms a canopy

over the site

Other mushroom species commercially harvested from the region include boletes, chanterelles,

matsutake, spreading hedgehog, and cauliflower

mushroom Although each of these species is

associated with matuit forest communities, the

need for further research in the region is clearly

indicated

Site-Specific Example

To fully understand the usefulness of the aforementioned information in the production of

special forest products in an ecosystem management perspective, consider the following example

The site has been descubed by Cooper and others

(1991) as the grand fn twinflower habitat type

This habitat type is common across northern and

central Idaho, with similar habitat types described

in northeastern Washington, western Montana,

and northeastern Oregon (Cooper and others

1991) The normal elevation range is from 2,200

to 5,300 feet on protected and gentle slopes

17
Dominant successional tree species include

Douglas-fir, ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine,

Engelmann spruce and western larch (Cooper

and others 1991) This plant community exhibits

a high degree of biological diversity, supporting

7 to 8 conifer species, 18 shrub species, and up to

23 perennial forb species in all but late-successional stands (Cooper and others 1991)

The beargrass phase of the grand fir-twinflower

habitat type normally lies above 4,900 feet, with

southerly aspects The understory is dominated

by beargrass with a layer of blue huckleberry

superimposed above it Major serai tree species

include Douglas-fir and lodgepole pine (Cooper

and others 1991)

Early successional management on these sites

might concentrate on the harvest of huckleberries and various mushroom species The

harvest of the hucklebernes will be on sites exhibiting a competitive advantage for the true

huckleberry species Site preparation and presence of appropriate fungal mycelium will greatly influence the production of mushroom species including morels (Molina and others 1993)

Mid-successional stands of this habitat type

generally will continue to produce huckleberries,

however, the quantity will tend to decrease as

canopy shading increases over the shrub layer

Beargrass populations during this stage of forest

development will increase greatly The color,

length, and overall quality of the individual blades

should achieve acceptable product quality with

constancy approaching 90 percent and coverage

near 30 percent (table 4)

Stands exhibiting late-successional characteristics and climax habitat type populations will be

uniquely suited to the production of beargrass

Although product quantity will decrease slightly

in heavily shaded communities, product quality

will become excellent Due to the increased

amount of shading provided by the overstory of

mature trees, beargrass blades become thicker,

darker, and grow to an extended blade length

The harvest of beargrass on the grand fir-twinflower habitat type, beargrass phase, during the

late-successional stands will exceed the production of quality beargrass product on most other

sites

Expansion Pathways and

Economic Contributions of an

Expanded East-Side Industry

The east side has experienced increased attention

from the traditionally west-side based special forest products industry over the past decade This

increased interest is due, in part, to the decreased

availability of raw products west of the Cascade

Range in Washington and Oregon coupled with

the normal entrepreneurial desire for business

expansion

The east side boasts a comparatively untapped

resource base Although commercial harvest has

been carried out for over a decade in this region,

readily accessible product supplies exist for most

species

Although product supplies are available, a mobile

and trained workforce is less accessible Traditional forest-based employment in the region

involves limited travel, generally based within 75

miles of harvest locations For special forest

products harvesters to be similarly employed,

they will need to be involved in the harvest of

products for multiple segments of the industry

The comparatively high unemployment figures

for parts of the region suggest that an available

workforce could be mobilized as the industry

expands Unfortunately, the jobs tend to be lower

paying and even more seasonal than the timber

harvesting jobs they hope to replace

Although business expenses may be slightly

decreased in this region due to lower costs of

overhead and facilities, higher transportation

costs can be expected to move products to final

markets in many cases One method for industry expansion into this region will be through

franchises with established businesses from western Washington and western Oregon, these firms

have established markets, contracts, and access to

needed capital Many businesses, however, will

be built by sole proprietors or small family units

with an innate business sense and a lot of hard

work

New business combinations—The new business

owner establishing a processing facility on the

east side will face an interesting set of opportunities and decisions To begin with, new businesses
will have to decide which segment(s) of the

industry it should concentrate on. Obviously,

markets and entrepreneurial preference will

be a major factor in answering this question.

The floral greens segment of the industry boasts

one of the longest harvest seasons for the east

side. Although plants used as floral greens can be

harvested throughout the year, winter and spring

pose problems. Many products are not harvestable during winter months when snowfall completely covers the plants or makes roads impassable; this may preclude harvest for 3 or more

months each year. During the spring growing

season, plant tips are fragile and do not react well

to harvest, transportation, or storage (Schlosser

and others 1992).

The Christmas greens segment of the industry

will hold many opportunities in this region. First,

there is a readily available supply of evergreen

boughs in the region. Second, the labor force in

the region during late fall and early winter should

be amenable to this type of labor. And finally,

access to product markets is not hindered as in

some other segments of this industry.

Most product markets for Christmas greens are

found within the United States. Although many

are located in California, others exist in Colorado,

Texas, and other population centers along the

eastern seaboard; thus, access to westside seaports and international airports is not critical.

Trucking routes and medium-sized airports will

most likely be the primary source of infrastructure linkages to final markets.

The harvest of evergreen boughs and manufacture of wreaths and similar products begins

after the first sustained fall frost and ends in

December, depending on product orders. Eastside businesses, especially those located at higher

elevations, will be able to begin harvest about 2

to 3 weeks earlier than their west-side counterparts because of earlier frosts encountered in the

region. The earlier starting time could be an

important competitive edge to companies located on the east side.

A significant amount of the wild edible mushroom industry is already located east of the

Cascade Range. As businesses grow, horizontally

integrate, and venture into other product markets,

the importance of the mushroom harvest will be

amplified in the region. Initially, it is doubtful

that the volume of mushrooms harvested from the

region will increase. Instead, it could be speculated that the volume of mushrooms being harvested from the region but shipped to the west

side for processing will decrease. This decrease

will result from the increased purchasing power

by east-side companies, competing on price,

location, and a reduction in harvester time commitments. Initially, morels and boletes will be the

most predominant species harvested, with other

species "brought on line" as marketing efforts

expand.

Harvest seasons for other edibles and medicinals

differ greatly, depending on the specific products

harvested. Unfortunately, mushrooms and edible berry products are marketed through different distribution channels, and marketing both

products could substantially increase overhead

costs. Also, if berries are processed into specialty

jams and jellies, the company would incur additional costs for processing equipment, licenses,

and the need for specialized knowledge concerning the production of jams and jellies. Significant

opportunities will exist for businesses interested

in this segment of the industry.

Although integration of multiple segments into

one business is not necessary, it may be beneficial to rural economies looking for sustainable

natural resource business that provides full-year

(or nearly so) emplovment. The labor force

needed for this industry has been mobilized for

the Pacific yew bark harvest, the wild berry harvest and the wild edible mushroom harvest. Additionally, smaller companies starting businesses in

this region have experienced success in evergreen

harvest and floral greens harvest.

Horizontal integration is common in the industry. It is unlikely, however, that a new business

locating on the east side would open a fully integrated operation initially due to specific needs

such as capital, developing a trained workforce,

establishing needed market linkages, and other

factors. It is probable that businesses will begin

with one or two product lines, then add related

product lines that can be marketed through

existing or similar distribution channels. For

instance, a beargrass processor might add

19
Pachistima, western sword-fern, and Oregongrape

during expansion efforts But, the addition of wild

edible mushroom processing would require significant time and capital to develop markets and

processing techniques

Industry structure—The special forest products

industry reflects a common structure across all

segments of production In every case, the industry relies on landowners and managers to make

these noncultivated products available for harvest Sometimes this harvest is the result of specific management practices intended to improve

the quality or quantity of products from the site

More frequently, the harvest is simply a positive

externality

The products are collected by several harvesters

that are generally independent contractors securing their own leases and harvest permits Occasionally, these harvesters are employees of the

processors, but this has not been common in the

past Within the wild edible mushroom and berry

segments, it is common to find buyers that purchase the product from the harvesters in remote

areas to provide the value-added service of species sorting and delivery to processing facilities

This service is not common in the other segments

of the industry

Processors sort, clean, bunch, package, dehydrate,

preserve, or otherwise prepare the products for

wholesale markets These businesses add as much

or more value to the product as the harvester

Business owners usually have a processing facility, transportation services, employees for the

actual processing, and marketing personnel In

some cases, the processor uses the services of a

marketing agent to find buyers around the world

for their clients' products Others involved in the

marketing and transportation of these products

include freight forwarders for international links,

foreign marketers, retail outlets, and the

consumer

Current and Potential

Contributions to the

East-Side Economy

Floral greens and Christmas greens—There is

currently no published information on the size of

the floral and Christmas greens industry east of

the Cascade Range It has been estimated, however, that revenues for this industry might have

been between $5 and $10 million during 1993 in

total product sales at the wholesale level Extrapolation from the west-side industry provides

some insights into the future of this industry east

of the Cascade Range

The average floral and Christmas greens processor in western Oregon, western Washington, and

southwestern British Columbia employed 12 fulltime, year-round employees with an additional

71 part-time, seasonal employees, on average

Businesses purchased materials from an average

of about 50 full-time, year-round harvesters, and

50 part-time, seasonal harvesters during 1989 An

average of $397,000 in wages and benefits were

paid to these individuals during the same year

The cost of purchasing materials during 1989

averaged about $795,000 per business Hence,

the direct contnbution to the regional economy by

the average floral and Christmas greens business

in western Oregon, western Washington, and

southwestern British Columbia during 1989 was

about $1 53 million (Schlosser and others 1991)

Although it is impossible to predict if and how

long it will take for new companies locating in

this region to reach this size, the highly competitive nature of the industry suggests that contributions of this magnitude to the regional economy are possible within the first decade of operation This view is based on the belief that the

industry has continued to expand since the

Schlosser and others (1991) study was completed

Additionally, the differences in products and

land ownership characteristics east of the Cascade

Range will influence this evolving industry For

example special range products, although marketed through similar channels, will have a significant impact on the evolution of new businesses

In addition, the various plant products and largely

untapped resources available to east-side processors will result in limited competition for specific

plant species, at least in the early stages of

industry development

Wild edible mushrooms—Mushroom processors

in Idaho, eastern Oregon, and eastern Washington

processed an average of 207,000 pounds of mushrooms per business during 1992, employed about

5 6 individuals to process mushrooms, with an

average of 112 2 harvesters per business

20
supplying the raw materials to these facilities

East-side processors employed about 2 0 individuals per business with an average of 162 7 harvesters completing the mushroom harvest during

1992 (Schlosser and Blatner 1995)

The typical east-side processor was open 136

days (4 5 months) during 1992 and purchased

45,000 pounds of mushrooms from harvesters

The average facility spent about $39,000 to

employ facility personnel during 1992 The combined payroll and product acquisition costs for

east-side businesses totaled about $1 1 million

per business Adding in overhead, advertising,

and profit, each east side mushroom processor

contnbuted about $13 million to the gross state

product for a total contribution of about $118

million during 1992 (Schlosser and Blatner

1995)

Although it would be tempting to assume that

each new mushroom processor in the region

would add $1 3 million to the "lucky" local

economy, the reality of the addition of a new

processor would be significantly less The average wild edible mushroom business represented

on the east side has been in operation for up to a

decade and even more in some situations The

more likely impact of a new processor would be

that of the average Idaho processor, a state that

lags behind the rest of the region in terms of

individual business development and in years of

operation The average Idaho processor adds

about $328,000 to the local economy and employs about 1 5 facility personnel with an additional 47 5 harvesters (Schlosser and Blatner

1995)

Although expansion of the mushroom industry is

likely, it is impossible to estimate the potential

number of businesses the resource could support

To date, no assessment of the resource base for

mushrooms on either the west or the east side has

been completed Further research is needed to

answer this question

A Rural Development Tool

Based on the above discussion, a community with

a floral greens, Chnstmas greens, or wild edible

mushrooms processing facility will benefit significantly, directly and indirectly Direct benefits

include the increased employment to between 50

to 125 individuals and a direct contribution to the

regional economy of $325,000 to $1 5 million per

business In most situations, this industry creates

new revenues for a rural economy

It is useful to contrast these economic impacts

against those created by the traditional timber harvesting and lumber manufacturing industries

The average north Idaho sawmill processed about

20 million board feet of logs during 1990,

employed an average of 177 people in all phases

of production (logging forestry, processing, residue, secondary, and other misc ), and contributed

an estimated $5 1 million in wages to the local

economy The total direct contnbution to the

regional economy is much larger The special forest products industry compares rather well in

terms of average number of individuals employed

at 125 But in terms of the direct economic contribution to the local economy, the average floral

and Chnstmas greens or wild edible mushroom

processor pales in contrast This comparison

further highlights tht discrepancy between the

traditionally higher paying jobs with benefits of

the timber industry and the lower paying and seasonal jobs of the special forest products industry

Conversely, the indirect benefits of the special

forest products industry to the rural and urban

communities of this region are many First, social

costs for unemployment and welfare are decreased

when these individuals are employed through harvesting jobs Second any increase in local

employment contributes to local business stability

and growth due to the increased dollars circulated

in the community and an increased tax base

Finally, although less tangible, there is a large

benefit derived from increased employment

levels through a business venture of this type

within a community Many logging and mining

jobs are supposed to be "replaced" by high-tech

jobs requiring additional training This theoretical

replacement does not consider the rugged individualism of many in the logging and mining sector

Personal communicumn 1994 Charles Keegan Director

of Forest Industry Rest irch Bureau Business Economic

Research School of Business Administration University

of Montana Missoula MT^9182 1110

21
who value being free from indoor work settings

and close supervision (Carroll and Lee 1990, Lee

and others 1991) Special forest products harvesting will allow those individuals with a strong

work ethic to be self-employed, productive

members of society

Potential Factors Limiting

Expansion

Although the industry has tremendous growth

potential, the rate and extent of future expansion

will be governed by various institutional factors,

future market development efforts, and the limitations of supporting ecosystems Potential institutional barriers to expansion of the industry

include laws and regulations governing the harvest, transport and sale of special forest products,

and other factors such as the reluctancy of the

banking community to finance new businesses,

particularly in a unique and frequently poorly

understood industry

Market development activities are cntical to the

expansion of the industry New products are

constantly being promoted by industry leaders to

increase the volume and variety of floral and

Christmas greens and wild edible mushrooms

sold in various markets Similarly, there is a

continuing need for market development efforts

for existing products in both domestic and international markets

Finally, there is a strong need to develop a more

complete understanding of the role of these plants

in various ecosystems and the sustainabihty of

harvest Failure to develop a more complete

understanding of the role of these plants in the

ecosystem may lead to over harvesting and a

correspondingly needless future downsizing of

the industry

Institutional Barriers

From an economic development and a policy

perspective, there is a need to develop a costeffective and meaningful system for the administration of special forest products permit systems

and leases Substantial progress in this area has

been made over the past year as agencies have

attempted to craft regionwide regulations and

policies governing the administration of the harvest and sale of these products, particularly in the

Pacific Northwest Region Inconsistencies between district policies under the old regulations

as well as the number of permits required from

different district offices frequently made the

harvest and transport of special forest products

from the forest to the processor impossible or

impractical Current efforts underway have the

potential to overcome many of these problems,

however, further work remains

One example is the tendency to treat the eastside industry exactly the same as the west-side

industry by assuming uniformity in products and

product pnces across the four-state region in

setting harvest fees Product pnces received by

harvesters located on the east side often differ

significantly from those received by their westside counterparts because of product differences,

frequently higher transport costs, and the less

developed nature of the east-side industry Hence,

setting of east-side harvesting fees based on westside prices may force the harvester to misrepresent his harvesting activities

In other cases, industry growth is being hindered

by the unwillingness, of some east-side National

Forest Districts to offer harvest permits, due in

part to budget reductions within the agency Some

existing state laws also are impractical relative to

the harvest and transport of special forest products, for example, in Montana the sale of wild

edible mushrooms is illegal under older state

laws

The growth of the special forest products industry is further hindered by a lack of investment

capital Over the past few years, small businesses

of all types within the economy have experienced difficulty in obtaining needed capital for

short-term operations and long-term investment

needs This problem is more pronounced in the

special forest products industry The industry's

small entrepreneurial nature, centered around the

harvesting and processing of unique products,

combined with its seasonal nature and the negative image created by the media relative to the

harvest of selected products, has significantly

increased the difficulty of acquiring needed

capital

22
Market Development Conclusions

Market development activities are at the heart of

this industry. In fact, if it were not for the market

development activities of many of the current

industry leaders, it would not have achieved its

current size or diverse nature. Further, the growth

of this industry has occurred almost solely on its

own initiative, with little or no assistance from

the research community, various state departments of agriculture and commerce, or the

Federal Government. In contrast to more traditional sectors of the economy, the special forest

products industry has been somewhat overlooked

or discounted as unimportant or viewed from the

negative perspective as an "industry based on

theft" and thus undeserving of the types of assistance commonly provided other industries in

the Pacific Northwest.

This lack of support for the industry has significantly hindered its ability to expand in domestic and particularly in international markets.

Although some progress has been made in this

area over the past few years, the industry remains

poorly understood by many people within state

and Federal Government, and only limited funds

have been provided to aid in the expansion of this

sector of the economy.

Need for an Ecosystem

Management Perspective

A more complete understanding of the role of

these plants in the ecosystem and their potential

for management is critical to the industry if we

are going to progress from the present exploitative stage of industry development. If the principles of ecosystem management are going to be

followed in the future management of public

lands, then considerable research will be required.

At present, we have only a limited understanding

of the potential to manage forest ecosystems for

the production of special forest products and

other forest outputs. Management systems, suitable harvest levels, yield functions, sustainability,

the long-term impact of the sustained harvesting

of special forest products and many other relations will become increasingly important as the

industry expands.

The special forest products industry of the Pacific

Northwest already contributes hundreds of

millions of dollars annually to the regional economy. Initial economic and marketing studies of

the floral and Christmas greens and wild edible

mushrooms have been completed. As many businesses have already proven, the east side holds

the potential of seemingly limitless opportunities

for the rural entrepreneur operating in this dynamic industry. It can be further argued that a

significant amount of the growth in this industry

is likely to occur on the east side due to its vast

resource and employment base.

The first assessment o( the floral greens resource

base for both the weM (Schlosser and others 1992)

and the east side has been finished. Preliminary

studies of the ecologv and management of the

resource base underKing the wild edible mushroom industry are ongoing by various researchers.

Unfortunately, little of this research is focused on

east-side forest ecos) stems.

Many planners and economic development experts believe the special forest products industry

has the potential to expand over the next decade.

Expansion of this industry may provide badly

needed jobs in many of the rural economies of the

Pacific Northwest, but the jobs created will be

lower paying, with feu if any benefits.

Developing new, and expanding existing product

markets in the industry implies that adequate wild

resources are and will continue to be available in

the future. Although this may be true for some

species, many concerns have already been raised

about others, particularly among various mushrooms species. To effectively manage the underlying resource base o! this industry, it is critical

to undertake new research efforts to develop a

more thorough undei standing of this growing

industry including its markets, management of the

resource base, and the role of these plants in the

ecosystem. It is also uitical that we develop a

more comprehensive knowledge of the types of

jobs created by this industry and their impact on

communities.

23
Product availability and quality are strongly

influenced by the type of ecosystem management practices employed in a given area. In

general, the joint production of floral greens and

traditional forest products is more compatible

with intermediate stand practices, uneven-age

management, and other partial-cutting approaches as opposed to clearcut, seed-tree, and

shelterwood regeneration techniques. There are,

however, specific floral greens plants that thrive

under the environment created by the latter silvicultural systems. The harvest of boughs also is

compatible with the growing of many tree species

for commodity production.

The successful joint production of special forest

products and other forest products depends

greatly on three factors: (1) the availability of

desired plant species in the environmental gradient (habitat type), (2) the manipulation of site

conditions to favor selected species, and (3) astute management of the harvest of the selected

species to ensure long-term sustainability.

New ways of handling nontimber resources and

more open communication between those who

manage and harvest these resources are needed to

maintain the quality and sustainability of both the

human and ecological communities involved.

Existing research-management issues are highly

complex and are not easily addressed. All of the

interested parties must work together in an open

and frequently interdisciplinary manner if viable

approaches to management of forests for the joint

production of special forest products and other

outputs are to be achieved.

24
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Savage, M. 1995. Pacific Northwest special forest products: an industry in transition. Journal of

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Schlosser, W.E.; Blatner, K.A.; Chapman, R.C. 1991. Economic and marketing implications of

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Schlosser, W.E.; Blatner, K.A.; Zamora, B.A. 1992. Pacific Northwest forest lands potential for

floral greens production. Northwest Science. 6(1): 4-55.

Schlosser, William E.; Blatner, Keith A. 1995. Economic and marketing implications of the wild

edible mushroom harvest in Washington, Oregon and Idaho. Journal of Forestry. 93(3): 31-36.

25
Appendix

Common and Scientific Names of Species Mentioned

Common name Scientific name

Arnica

Arrowleaf balsamroot

Baby's breath

Beargrass

Big huckleberry

Blackberries

Black henbane

Blue huckleberry

Boletes

Boletus

Cascara

Cauliflower mushroom

Chanterelles

Clasping (annual) pepperweed

Coral tooth

Creeping Oregongrape

Deer-fern

Douglas-fir

Dwarf bilberry

Dwarf huckleberry

Dwarf Oregongrape (Oregongrape)

Early blueberry

Elderberries

Engelmann spruce

Evergreen huckleberry

Fool's huckleberry

Grand fir

Grouse whortleberry

Holly

Huckleberries

Incense-cedar

Indian ricegrass

Arnica latifolia Bong.

Balsamorhiza sagittata (Pursh) Nutt.

Gypsophila paniculata L.

Xeropyllum tenax (Pursh) Nutt.

Vaccinium membranaceum Dougl.

Rubus spp. L.

Hyoscyamus niger L.

Vaccinium globulare Rydb.

Boletus spp. Fr.

Boletus spp. Dill ex Fr.

Rhamnus purshiana DC.

Sparassis crispa Wiilf.: Fr.

Cantharellus spp. Adans. ex. Fr.

Lepidium perfoliatum L.

Hericium abietis (Weir ex Hubert) K. Harrison

Berberis repens Lindl.

Blechnum spicant (L.) Roth

Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco

Vaccinium myrtillus L.

Vaccinium caespitosum Michx.

Berberis nervosa Pursh

Vaccinium ovalifolium Smith

Sambucus spp. L.

Picea engelmannii Parry ex Engelm.

Vaccinium ovatum Pursh

Menziesia ferruginea Smith

Abies grandis (Dougl. ex D. Don) Lindl.

Vaccinium scoparium Leiberg

Ilex spp L.

Vaccinium spp. L.

Libocedrus decurrens Torr.

Oryzopsis hymenoides (R. & S.) Ricker

26
Common name Scientific name

Lodgepole pine

Matsutake

Matsutake

Morels

Mountain hemlock

Noble fir

Oregon black truffle (black picoa)

Pachistima (Oregon box-wood)

Pacific silver fir

Pacific yew

Perennial pepperweed

Ponderosa pine

Puffballs

Queen's cup beadlily

Quinine conk

Saskatoon serviceberry

Salal

Scotch broom

Spreading hedgehog

Subalpine fir

Tall Oregongrape

Truffle

Twinflower

Western hemlock

Western huckleberry

Western juniper

Western larch

Western redcedar

Western sword-fern

Western white pine

Wild ginger

Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud.

Tricholoma spp. (Fr.) Kummer

Tricholoma matutake (Itod Imai) Sing.

Morchella spp. Dill, ex Fr.

Tsuga mertensiana (Bong.) Carr.

Abies procera Rehd.

Picoa carthusiana Tulasne & Tulasne

Pachistima myrsinites (Pursh) Raf.

Abies amabilis Dougl. ex Forbes

Taxus brevifolia Nutt.

Lepidium latifolium L.

Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex Laws.

Lycoperdon spp. Pers. and Calvatia spp. Fr.

Clintonia uniflora (Schult ) Kunth

Fomitopsis officinalis (Vill.: Fr.) Bond et

Sing [Fomes officinalis (Vill.: Fr.) Faull]

Amelanchier alnifolia Nutt.

Gaultheria shallon Pursh

Cytisus scoparius (L.) Link

Hydnum repandum L.: Fr.

Abies lasiocarpa (Hook.) Nutt.

Berberis aquifolium Pursh

Tuber spp. Mich, ex Fr.

Linneae borealis L.

Tsuga heterophyla (Raf.) Sarg.

Vaccinium occidental L

Juniperous scopulorum (Hook.) Nutt.

Larix occidentalis Nutt.

Thuja plicata Donn ex D Don

Polystichum munitum (Kaulf.) Presl.

Pinus monticola Dougl. ex D. Don

Asarum caudatum Lindl.

U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 1997 - 589-353 / 63007 REGION M

27
The Forest Service of the U.S. Department of

Agriculture is dedicated to the principle of multiple

use management of the Nation's forest resources

for sustained yields of wood, water, forage, wildlife,

and recreation. Through forestry research,

cooperation with the States and private forest

owners, and management of the National Forests

and National Grasslands, it strives—as directed by

Congress—to provide increasingly greater service

to a growing Nation.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)

prohibits discrimination in its programs on the basis

of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability,

political beliefs, and marital or familial status. (Not all

prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with

disabilities who require alternative means of communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape,

etc.) should contact the USDA Office of Communications

at (202) 720-2791 (voice), or (800) 855-1234 (TDD).

To file a complaint, write the Secretary of Agriculture,

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250,

or call (800) 245-6340 (voice), or (800) 855-1234 (TDD).

USDA is an equal employment opportunity employer.

Pacific Northwest Research Station

333 S.W. First Avenue

P.O. Box 3890

Portland, Oregon 97208-3890

Schlosser, William E.; Blatner, Keith A. 1997. Special forest products: an east-side

perspective. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-380. Portland, OR: U S Department of

Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station 27 p. (Quigley, Thomas

M, ed.; The Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project: scientific

assessment).

The special forest products industry has gained increasing attention, as timber harvest levels

in the Pacific Northwest have declined, and has been heralded, at least by some, as a partial

solution to the employment problems common throughout the rural areas of Washington.

Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. To date, relatively little work has been published on those portions of the industry located east of the Cascade Range. Yet the east side produced about 48

percent of the total wild edible mushroom harvest (about 1.9 million pounds worth $1 1.8

million) during 1992. The region also accounts for all of the baby's breath harvested in the

Pacific Northwest and has the potential to produce large quantities of other floral products. It

also seems to have the potential to become an important producer of other edibles and

medicinal products; however, relatively little is known about this segment of the industry.

The following report provides overview of the special forest products industry east of the

Cascade Range and evaluates its potential for expansion.

Keywords: Special forest products, wild edible mushrooms, floral greens, Christmas greens,

economics, marketing.